Greatest Legacy of the Magus Universe

Adam lay on the snow-covered path, glancing at the stars or whatever it was that shone brightly in the depths of the spirit world.

His body felt cold, but the blood pooling underneath him felt warm. It was a strange sensation. To be so close to the embrace of death, only mere moments away from stepping through the gates of the afterlife.

Ah, I truly overestimated myself…

He thought bitterly. The left half of his body, from the shoulder to the waist, had been ripped off by the four-armed abomination. This was likely in retaliation for what Adam had done to it a few seconds ago.

Ah, what made me think I could take on that creature? For all I know, it might as well be stronger than even a Mana Core Magus…

The pain was unlike anything he'd ever felt before, yet his mind felt strangely calm, cold, and calculating. It was as if the injury he had just sustained couldn't form a ripple of emotion inside his spirit sea. Regardless, he was now incapacitated. Perhaps… permanently.

And to make matters worse, the chain still tightly clung to his neck.

Ah, the bastard probably thinks this is an illusion. I wish it were… He thought to himself as he felt strength gradually leave his body.

A few meters away, the four-armed creature stood tall. In one of its hands, it held Adam's severed limb, clutching the bloody arm still attached to the mangled portion of chest and torso.

It lowered its head, examining the torn flesh with a slight tilt of its head. Then, a moment later, it flung the mutilated piece over the edge of the path and into the darkness waiting below.

Finally, it turned towards Adam. Seeing his chest slowly rise and fall as he tried to breathe, the four-armed creature tilted its head again, his thoughts a mystery.

Regardless, it was going to kill him. Adam had landed an attack on it, after all. That hurt its pride. It was something the creature could not forgive. It took a step forward and instantly appeared before the pale, raven-haired youth.

Adam looked back at him with blurry eyes.

Is this it? I can't even cast a spell with one hand, he thought bitterly.

He didn't say a word. He was unable to. He simply stared at him, his eyes flickering with quiet defiance.

The creature tilted its head again, puzzled.

Why was this human, who was at death's door, so calm? Something about this human irked the spirit world creature very much.

There was something in his eyes… something terrifying… something divine. It caused the four-armed creature to suddenly feel a chill crawl down its spine. It let out a bestial roar from its gaping maw.

Just as it was momentarily distracted, something crashed into its back with overwhelming force, hurtling it like a ragdoll towards the cliff face.

The impact was immense, like an entire mountain had been hurled at it, crushing stones and sending shockwaves through the air as the four-armed creature slammed into the jagged rock wall, cracking it deeply with the sheer violence of the blow.

Felix suddenly appeared beside Adam. He looked at the youth with fear and panic as he knelt. "Boy, are you alright?! Can you… can you still move?"

Adam rolled his eyes.

Stupid bastard, does it look like I'm alright?

He had no energy to speak. And not for a single moment did he think that the man cared for him. If anything, the cultist only cared for himself and his safety. If Adam died, then he'd die too.

Felix's eyes flashed with a ruthless light as he reached out to inspect the youth's wound. But right at that moment, the sharp sound of crumbling stones echoed through the hill, followed by heavy footsteps and a low, guttural growl that caused him to shudder.

As he turned his head towards the cliff, all he saw was a dozen sharp ice spears hurling at him and Adam with unmatched ferocity and accuracy.

The cultist's eyes narrowed. He outstretched a hand and weaved a simple hand seal, then he swiped upward. Following that, a thick wall rose from the ground, protecting him and Adam from the creature's frozen projectiles.

The ice spears collided with the earthen wall in a thunderous clash, shattering both forces upon impact. As the final spear struck, the wall gave way with a deep rumble. Dust and snow burst outward, blanketing the wide path and reducing visibility to near zero.

Yet, despite that, and the fact that its eyes were sewn shut, the four-armed creature accurately located Felix and Adam. Not giving them any moment of respite, it immediately arrived beside them, its claws ready to strike like the force of nature.

The creature was simply too fast. Its physical speed was akin to teleportation. Felix didn't even have enough time to cast a defensive spell. All he could do was augment his arms with mana and defend himself.

The creature struck the human with wild ferocity. Though its claws didn't manage to dig into Felix's flesh, its blow was still able to hurl him through the air. Then, without wasting a breath, it raised its outstretched hands and brought them down, aiming to finish Adam once and for all.

But before its claws could connect, Felix's chain snapped taut and yanked Adam away, dragging him out of harm's reach just in time, and narrowly saving him from certain death.

Not even a second had passed, and the four-armed creature had already dashed towards the location the two humans were sent flying. It was visibly furious now, and the temperature on the hill dropped significantly. The blizzard, too, turned violent.

What followed was a brutal melee between Felix and the four-armed creature. Caught between their relentless crash, Adam desperately struggled to survive. His bloodied and battered body was dragged from one spot to another by the chain coiled tightly around his neck.

Each time the two collided, he was yanked along like a ragdoll, barely conscious, barely breathing… but still alive somehow. He truly regretted his decisions that brought him to death's door. Adam felt like he would truly not make it back home.

Felix realized that, too…

He knew that if he continued to drag the youth's injured body across the battlefield along with him, it wouldn't be long before Adam drew his last breath.

Just the powerful shockwaves radiating from the two Mana Core-level entities' blow was enough to deal lethal damage to the already injured youth. And it was indeed so. The more time passed, the more injuries accumulated on Adam's body just by being close to their fight. Felix had to take a gamble.

Either way, his first priority was to leave this cursed place, and for that… he needed Adam alive. The youth was not dead yet. There was still a decent chance that he could be healed. For that to happen, he needed to be put in a stable condition first.

And so, he did something drastic.

He cancelled the chain spell tethering him to Adam!

The magical shackle dissolved in an instant, dissipating into specks of mana. And when it did…

Adam's lips curled into a smirk.

Finally…